Bed attachment.



PATENTED DEC. 13 1904-.

J. W. CASI'EH. BED ATTACHMENT.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 20, 1904.

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PATENTED DEC. 18, 1904.

J. W. (EASTER BED ATTACHMENT.

APPLIUATIUN FILED JULY 20, 1004.

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wil nmams UNITED STATES Patented December 13, 1904.

JOSEPH W. UASTER, OF ClNOlNNATll, IOWA.

BED ATTACHMENT.

SPEGIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 777,075, dated December 13, 1904.

Application filed July 20, 1904. Serial No. 217,390. (No model.)

To all whom, it may concern.-

Be it known that I, JOSEPH W. CAs'rnn,a citizen of the United States, residing at Cincinnati, in the county of Appanoose and State of Iowa, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Bed Attachments; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention,such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

My invention relates to an attachment for beds; and it consists of certain novel features of construction and combination of parts, the preferred form whereof will be hereinafter set forth, and pointed out in the claim.

The prime object of my invention, among others, is to provide an attachment for the bed proper, whether it may be in the form of an ordinary mattress or a grouping of springs, which will be found useful in caring for invalids without the necessity of the person being removed from the bed or from a recumbent position.

A further object of my invention is to render my mattress attachment completely sanitary, inasmuch as the parts may be thoroughly cleansed and sterilized after use.

Other objects and advantages will be hereinafter made clearly apparent, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, which are to be considered a part of this application, and in which Figure 1 shows a perspective view of my mattress attachment as applied to use. Fig. 2 is a sectional view of my attachment and also a sectional view of a contiguous portion of the mattress and the supporting-springs commonly employed to carry the mattress. Fig. 3 is a special device used in connection with my attachment, as will be hereinafter clearly set forth. Fig. 4 is a sectional view of my attachment complete, showing the cover or lid section disposed in its operative position. Fig. 5 is a similar view to that shown in Fig. 4, excepting that it is taken at right angles thereto. Fig. 6 is a perspective view of the cover or closure member of my mat tress attachment, while Fig. 7 shows a perspective View of a portion of an annular ringlike cushion which may in some instances be employed to cover the top rim or flange of my mattress attachment.

For convenience of reference to the various details of my invention and cooperating accessories numerals will be employed, the same numeral applying to a similar part throughout the several views.

It will be understood that my attachment may be used in connection with any form of mattress or bed by proper adaptation of the parts, as will be hereinafter clearly obvious. Iwill, however. confine my description to that form of mattress stuffed with hair, straw, cxcelsior, or the like and disposed upon the wovenwire spring, it being necessary to form a hole directly through the mattress and the wovenwire spring, said holes being located to register with each other.

In preparing the woven-wire spring I lirst clamp together the collars 1 and 2 at the desired point where a hole is to be formed and secure said collars together in any preferred way, as by the bolts or rivets 3. After the collars l and 2have thus been located in their proper positions the section of the wire spring within the collars is cutaway. .ll form a suitable opening through the mattress, which latter is designated by the numeral 4., and which, as above stated, shall register with the opening surrounded by the collars 1 and 2, and within the opening formed in the mattress I enter a tubular member 5, formed of suitable cloth and sewed to the contiguous edges of the cloth around the hole made in the mattress. The object of the member 5 is to pre vent the filling of the mattress from falling out of the opening made therethrough and also to receive the tubular member 6, of suitable material, as porcelain or granitized sheet metal, said tubular member being preferably formed at its upper edge with the downwardlyextending flange or lip 7, which is separated from the member Gby an annular space, as designated by the numeral 8, and designed to [it in said annular space between the members 6 and 7 is the upper edge of the removable receptacle 9, which is left entirely open at its upper end, but is provided with a bottom and also preferably provided with a shield or auxiliary bottom 10 of greater diameter, which auxiliary bottom will rest near the lower collar member 1 when the receptacle is disposed in its operative position, as shown in Fig. 4.

It will be observed that the lower edge of the member 6 extends downward through and below the collars 1 and 2, and said depending edge is provided with a bayonet-slot 11 upon diametrically opposite sides, said slots being for the purpose of cooperating with the lugs 12 upon diametrically opposite sides of the receptacle 9, and it is therefore obvious that said receptacle may be readily and effectively secured in telescopic cooperation with the member 6 by entering said lugs into said bayonetslots and giving the receptacle a partial rotation, as will be readily obvious by reference to Fig. 2. It will be observed that the upper edge of the member 6 is also provided with the upwardly and outwardly directed flange 13 to prevent the same from casually falling through the opening in the mattress and also to provide a suitable enlarged or flared mouth for said member 6, it being observed by reference to Fig. 1 that the upwardly-inclined flange 13 terminates in an annular horizontally-disposed collar 14:, resting upon a contiguous part of the mattress, and therefore disposed flush with the surface thereof. The flared mouth of the member 6 is designed to be filled or covered with a closure member, said closure comprising the body portion 15 and an outer covering 16, of leather, rubber, or other yielding substance, which at the same time may always be easily kept in a cleanly sterilized condition. The object of the closure member is to fill the depression formed by my mattress attachment and restore the even surface of the mattress, so that this part of the mattress would be used as a sleeping-place, if desired, without any inconvenience.

It will be observed that when the removable receptacle 9 is entered up from the lower side of the mattress into telescopic relationship with the member 6 the upper edge of said receptacle will enter the annular space 8 d between the upper part of the member 6 and its downwardly-projecting flange 7, whereby it will be impossible for any substance to enter between the walls of said members 6 and 9, insuring that said parts will always remain in a cleanly condition, the flange 7 serving as a conveyer or funnel to direct all substances downward into the receptacle 9..

I prefer to locate my entire mattress attachment near one edge of the mattress, so that the remaining portion of the mattress may be left for the invalid, it being understood that my attachment may be placed dieral outline and will therefore encroach as little as possible on the central portion of the bed, and being elliptical the flange 13 is correspondingly shaped and extended and the opening provided by said flanges l3 and 1 1 more efiiciently subscrves the purpose for which it is intended, as will be obvious.

As shown in Fig. 6, the closure member is preferably formed in two parts, and in some instances one of the removable members is provided on its under side with a flange or lip 17, which fits under the end of the flange 1 1, and thus tends to hold the part in position from casually slipping out of adjustment, suitable depending flanges 18 also being provided to fit around the body portion 15. \Vhen the two parts, therefore, of the closure are joined together and disposed so that the body portion 15 will rest within the open flared mouth of the receptacle 6, said flared end will be completely filled and that portion of the bed left flush with the remaining portion thereof, thus fitting it to be used the same as though my attachment had not been secured in place.

I also provide the shield or guard 19, which consists of a piece of suitable material properly shaped to have the side wings 20 and is also provided on its outer side and lower end with the anchoring attachment or finger 21, designed to extend up under a swelled portion 22 of the flange 7, whereby said guard 19 will be disposed in a vertical position, and its office is to direct all substances downward into the receptacle 9, as will be clearly obvious, it being understood that either end of the mattress may be turned to the head of the bed, as before explained, and the shield or guard 19 is therefore intended to be used upon either side of my attachment.

Inasmuch as the various parts of my attachment, excepting the cushioning or closure member, are made of some easily-sterilized cleanly substance-as porcelain, granitized metal, or the likeit follows that my attachment will be found thoroughly sanitary in every respect and that the only portions requiring to be cleansed can be easily washed and sterilized, as by scalding or by the application of any sterilizing substance, as will be obviously clear.

As a further means of cushioning the surface of the flange 14 while in use and after the closure 15 has been removed I provide an annular cushion 23, of any suitable material as rubber, leather, or the lilreand filled with some suitable cushioning substance and preferably having the inwardly-directed lip or depending edge 24, whereby said edge would take into the mouth of the flange 13, and thus prevent casual displacement of the annular cushion. If deemed desirable, an anchoringlip 25 may be secured upon the under side of the ring-like cushion 23, said lip being designed to take under a contiguous part of the flange 14.

My attachment will be found to subserve a most useful and important ofiice, and the various parts may be made of any desired material and any suitable size or shape deemed most desirable for meeting all requirements, and while I have described the perferred combination and construction of parts I desire to comprehend in this application all such substantial equivalents as may be considered as falling fairly within the scope and purview of my invention.

Having thus fully described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

The herein-described attachment for beds comprising the combination with the mattress, bed-springs or the like, of a tube-like member 6 located in an opening in the mattress or bed, said tubular member having a supporting-flange upon its lower end and a flared opening comprising the collars 13 and 14 upon its upper end, said tubular member 6 also having an inwardly and downwardly directed collar 7 providing an annular space 8; a removable receptacle 9 having its lower end completely closed and its upper end adapted to fit in said annular space behind the collars 7; means to detachably secure said receptacle within the tubular member 6 whereby its upper edge will be completely protected or covered by the flange 7, and a closure member for the open flared end of said tubular member 6 whereby the opening in the mattress will be made flush with the remaining portion of the bed, all combined substantially as specified and for the purpose set forth.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in the presence oftwo subscribing witnesses.

JOSEPH l/V. (EASTER.

Witnesses:

J. R. NEEDHAM, A. J. BAKER. 

